☀ look what the cat dragged in ☀

[cephalopodcounselor]

Who: Rose & anyone
When: Today
Where: near the coral in the plaza
Style: Starting with prose, but brackets are cool too.
Status: Open

Rose's first thought when arriving at Vatheon was that she'd somehow blacked out before they entered the new session. But one look around at all the actual people walking around was a sign that she was not in SBURB, a dream bubble or Kansas on the meteor anymore. Wherever it was that she was now currently located, she was soaking wet in her orange and yellow god tier outfit, on the ground and pretty damn drunk.

And Kanaya wasn't here with her. In fact, at this very moment, there wasn't anyone she recognized. So not only was she in somewhere completely unexpected, she was separated from her matesprit and her friends. Her head was starting to throb and she could use another drink about now. Might make all of this easier to deal with.

That's when she noticed the welcoming brochure on the ground next to her and reached out for it.

Comments

[cawcawmthrfckrs]

[Davesprite seriously doesn't expect to see Rose near the coral. She looks like hell, which is why he makes his way pretty quickly over to her.]

You look like hell, Lalonde. Nice god tier PJ's, by the way.

[He...doesn't bother saying "welcome back." That might be a little too much to handle at the moment.]

[cephalopodcounselor]

[Rose looked up when she heard a familiar voice. It didn't take long to tell which Dave it was. The bright orange alone would have been enough. She was happy to see someone she knew, especially someone she hadn't seen in 3 years.]

Daveschpriteeee. Wha-*HIC* what are you doing here?

[That's appreciated. It's definitely too much to handle right this second.]

[cawcawmthrfckrs]

[...the fuck?]

I got kidnapped like you and everyone else here. I've been around since Christmas or something like that. Rose, are you drunk?

[Please say no please say no please say no]

[shippingmath]

Even during a curse like the one currently going on, life doesn't stop, and Dirk is good at ignoring minor inconveniences for the sake of getting things done, when he wants to. Currently, being productive has taken him out of the house he and Roxy share, and is bringing him through the Plaza.

After eleven months in Vatheon, identifying people among large groups of people has come to be much easier than when he first arrived. The complete novelty of it has had a chance to wear off since then, and although some days he doesn't want to bother with it, it doesn't take him by surprise any more.

But today, the sight that greets him does give him pause- first because it's rare to see someone in a full outfit that's such a bright orange, second because of who it is wearing that outfit.

"Do mine eyes deceive me?" he drawls as he heads closer. "Not that I would mind hallucinating in neon orange. You just get here?"

[cephalopodcounselor]

"Dirk?" Rose asked, blinking her eyes. Yeah, she wasn't imagining things, that was Dirk. Not an easy face to forget even though she'd barely met him. And met was a pretty loose term. He'd appeared out of nowhere, said a few words, grabbed the sleeping Roxy and busted out of the dream bubble. But yeah, she remembered him.

"Yesh, I juss gothere, wheerever here is."

[shippingmath]

Wherever here is. Well, that answered one question- namely, whether she remembered the city or not, and the answer seemed to be a definite no. Well, he can't be too surprised. It's been months, after all, and she seems different from the last time he saw her.

Drastically, different, in fact. That slurred speech is both troubling and worryingly familiar. But he doesn't voice his suspicions, just holds out a hand in an offer to pull her to her feet. "If I said the one and only that would be a complete lie, but nevertheless your powers of recognition are unparalleled. Here, for the record, is Vatheon. And also a different universe."

[bethehugejerk]

The presence of this week's curse might have suggested the simple, logical notion of forgetting about avoiding sleep, and instead focusing on staying warm. Karkat, however, was stubborn to a fault. Plus, the regular trips to the coral made an easy excuse from the hugs he'd have to endure otherwise. Much like a cat, there was only so much physical affection he could endure before grumpiness would take over with the need for space.

By the time he hit the Plaza he had started to shiver. It wasn't a heavy chill, not the kind that would come with prolonged solitude, but the sort that nonetheless made him hunch shoulders and cross arms over his chest, hands buried into the crooks of his elbows. His pace he kept brisk; going slow wouldn't make him any warmer.

The sight of Rose halted that approach. He had seen her before, of course, and the bright orange of a Light player's god tier robe was enough to arrest the attention of all but the blind (without special synesthesia to cheat with). The thing was, he had heard by now what Rose got up to in the future.

After a moment, he called out to her.

"Lalonde? Get your ass up off the cobblestone, and please don't tell me that is beyond your capability right now, because the last I want to do is serve as the personal elevator for your torso column." The contact would grant the warmth he was presently lacking, but that thought he carefully filed away as fucking stupid.

[cephalopodcounselor]

"Thass me," Rose replied, raising her hand in a wave. "Did you juss gethere too, Karkat?" The answer was likely no, he seemed to be dry, unlike her. But she'd just seen him maybe 5 minutes ago back on the meteor as they were getting ready to head into the new session. So it wasn't entirely out of the realm of probability.

She placed one hand on the ground and tried to push herself up off the ground. She moved too quickly though and wound up feeling dizzy and sinking back to her knees. She'd try again when the world stopped spinning. "I can getup. I only need a mininute to clear my head."

[bethehugejerk]

Karkat's eyebrows sunk progressively lower as Rose gave her answer and attempted to right herself. He had expected this. Really, he had. While exceptions did exist, and flukes were common enough that one could never be sure, the prevailing trend was that the scientists brought in foreigners from progressively further into their respective futures.

"Motherfuck."

With that intonation, he shuffled on over to where she sat, pulled a chair from his sylladex, and took a seat. He had a feeling this would take a while.

"One," he began, "I did not just get here. I've lived in this city - Vatheon, by the way - for over two and a half earth years. The last time I was on the meteor was just as John was about to set off the Scratch, meaning before we met up with you and Dave and everything turned into one of those daytime shows they show on human television, except pan-wrenchingly awful. Two, I am not completely ignorant of what's happened in the three years you and the others spent on the meteor, though comprehension is still mercifully yet infuriatingly beyond my futile grasp. You've been drinking, right? Those human soporifics? Dave told me about it, so do not even try to argue with me about it; I will shut you the fuck down."

[nice_pipes]

[What in the names of all the gods in Olympus? The last thing Piper expects to see in Vatheon is someone on their back and looking pretty out of it. Also that is a very bright shirt and that's pretty much why her eye drifts to Rose. Piper hesitates before making her way toward her.]

Uh...hey. Are you okay?

[cephalopodcounselor]

[Rose blinked up at the girl talking to her. Not someone she knew, that was for sure.]

"Yesh. I'm perfic-*HIC* perfectely good. Jusst veryvery wet."

[nice_pipes]

[She smiles a little.]

Yeah, I can see that. Well, clothes and towels are free, so...if you want, we can go grab you something dry and in your size?

[copesetic]

It's alarming to Albert the number of children that populate the bubble, especially considering their purpose for being here. He supposed he can see why; teenagers are more emotional, more prone to overblown reaction, and that's exactly what the scientists are looking for. That fact alone makes Albert more motivated to leave, on top of the goal to change the future of his team back home already in place.

He wishes he was surprised to see the blonde girl sitting in a puddle by the coral in what appears to be a soaking wet set of orange pajamas, but he's not. Gritting his teeth against his anger at their captors for a moment, the white-haired German forces himself to relax and grabs a towel for the poor girl.

"Are you alright, miss?"

[cephalopodcounselor]

"Thankss," Rose slurred as she took the proffered towel. "I'm jusst confiused abbout where Iam." And also very drunk, but that wasn't something that needed to be said.

[copesetic]

Oh. Well then. He should have known. His augmented senses can smell the alcohol from here, though he can't quite place the type.

Mouth pressed in a frown, Albert gently pulls Rose to her feet by the armpit and sets her on her feet, keeping hold of her right arm with his left hand in case she teeters. "We'll get you some coffee before I explain. You'll take it in better sober."

Actually probably not, but she'll at least remember what he says if she's sober.

[spacecase]

[Well, maybe not all unfamiliar.

Jade spies an orange and yellow pile of wet pajamas. Her ears stand straight up and quiver--could this be Rose?

She's cautious in her approach, for all she knows the last time Rose saw her she was...er, "possessed" after all.]

Rose?

[cephalopodcounselor]

Jaade?

[Rose was happy to see her friend, mostly because she hasn't seen her in three years. But also because it was nice seeing someone she knew. And maybe a smidge of it was the fact that she was drunk off her caboose and most things made her happy. Wrap up all those reasons into one and Jade is on the receiving end of probably the biggest smile she's ever seen on Rose.]

[detectiveprincess]

Naoto was walking around. She was in need of some 'fresh' air and to get herself out of the agency. She knew that her two senpai were starting to worry about her - she had been doing much of the set up the past month. Half the time she had passed out working then found herself on bed the next morning.

So there she was, at the plaza. She noticed the confused girl and made her way to her.

"Are you alright?" she askedm unsure of what was needed at the moment.

[cephalopodcounselor]

"I'm perifuclty fine, thanksh for asking," Rose answered.

[sylphauxiliatrix]

[Or maybe Kanaya was here with her... just on the far side of the plaza. She'd been making a point of coming down here many times a day, just in case some new arrival showed up needing assistance. And boy, there seems to be one in need of assistance down there.]

[There's just one problem stopping Kanaya from heading down there. She can't make out who it is down on the ground there, but those colors are unmistakable... and there wasn't a light player she knew of that wouldn't be something of an emotional pipe bomb for her to meet. Which one was it though?]

[The bubbles too small to avoid the problem forever, so it's not long before she musters up the courage to move in.

Rose.

[cephalopodcounselor]

[Rose notices Kanaya even before she says her name. She can't help but grin widely at seeing that her matesprit is here. Wherever it was that she was, it didn't matter now. She wasn't alone anymore.]

Kananya, itsh youuuuu. I'm shooo happy to see you.

[ex_knowledge575]

Annabeth almost stumbles over the girl in the plaza when she first arrives. She curses at herself in Ancient Greek, knowing that this was prime time for newbies, then reaches down to the sopping wet girl sitting on the ground.

"Hi. You alright?"

[cephalopodcounselor]

"I'm fine. Thanksh fer askining."

Rose just looks at the girl's hand for a moment before taking it. She knows she needs the help up if she wants to do so without looking like a complete moron.

[stridercentric]

[Much later in the day, after Rose has already been welcomed and/or scolded by plenty of people, Bro happens to catch sight of her bright yellow and orange clothes. He's not too familiar with God Tier outfits, having only seen a rare few around Vatheon, but that design looks hella familiar. In fact, so does the girl wearing the outfit, even though he can't really place her.

He watches her as she walks- no, stumbles along the street and then suddenly moves sideways, into a bar. Really, now. How old is that girl? Fifteen? Sixteen? Not an age where bartenders stop asking for ID, that's for sure.

A frown, a scoff, then he crosses the street to enter the bar as well.]

[cephalopodcounselor]

[After her conversation with Kanaya had ended, Rose felt completely heartbroken. And unfortunately, her first thought was not "I should sober up and deal with this properly," but "I should go drown my sorrows with a bottle of whatever I can get my hands on."

So that's how she eventually found herself walking into a bar. Who knows if they'd even serve her, but it was worth the try. She makes her way up to the counter, takes a seat and waits for the bartender to notice her. She puts her hood up, thinking that the shadows it would cast on her face might obscure her real age.]